This invention relates generally to fire extinguishers, and more particularly to an improved head assembly for use with a portable fire extinguisher wherein a pressurized gas such as carbon dioxide is used as the extinguishing agent.
In the usual fire extinguisher construction a metal container or cylinder is filled with a quantity of a fire extinguishing agent, such as carbon dioxide or Freon, under pressure. The container is fitted with a removable head assembly which includes a user-actuable valve for controlling the dispensing of the pressurized gas, and which also may include a handle for carrying the extinguisher and a dispersal horn for directing the extinguishing agent in a desired direction.
Prior art head assemblies for fire extinguishers have been unnecessarily expensive and heavy, primarily because of their use of a metal body and the high manufacturing costs attendant therewith. Prior art attempts at manufacturing head assemblies having bodies formed from less expensive materials, such as injection-molded plastic, have not been entirely successful, primarily because the relatively heavy steel cylinders in which the extinguishing agents are contained have caused the plastic bodies of such assemblies to crack or deform when transported, thereby destroying the pressure seal between the assemblies and the cylinders.
Prior art fire extinguishers have also been awkward to use by reason of their handles not being centered with respect to the center of gravity of the extinguishers. As a result the user of such extinguishers has been subjected to a twisting moment in attempting to aim the extinguisher, making use of the extinguishers unnecessarily difficult and tiring.
Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide a new and improved head assembly for a portable fire extinguisher.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a head assembly for a fire extinguisher which is lighter in weight and more economical to manufacture than prior art designs.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a head assembly for a fire extinguisher which is more convenient and less tiring to use.